Cleaner

ABSTRACT

A portable vacuum cleaner comprises a main casing. The main casing includes an electric fan in an internal space thereof. The electric fan introduces air and discharges the air through an air discharge hole. A dust collector is detachably coupled to the main casing to surround the electric fan. The main casing is coupled with the dust collector to form a substantially rectangular body. A suction port is formed in a front surface of the dust collector. A dust filter is positioned in the body between the main casing and the dust collector. A manipulation unit is provided controlling the electric fan.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to a vacuum cleaner, and more specifically, to a portable vacuum cleaner that may be seated on a desk or table to suck up dust, such as nail dust.

DISCUSSION OF RELATED ART

A vacuum cleaner is a device that uses an air pump to create a partial vacuum to suck up dust and dirt, usually from floors, and optionally from other surfaces as well. The dirt is collected by either a dust bag or a cyclone for later disposal. Vacuum cleaners, which are used in homes as well as in industry, exist in a variety of sizes and models—small battery-operated hand-held devices, domestic central vacuum cleaners, huge stationary industrial appliances that can handle several hundred liters of dust before being emptied, and self-propelled vacuum trucks for recovery of large spills or removal of contaminated soil. Lightweight hand-held vacuum cleaners, either powered from rechargeable batteries or mains power, are also popular for cleaning up smaller spills. A need exists for portable, hand-held vacuum cleaners for use in, e.g., nail shops, to effectively remove the annoying nail dust and fumes created while carrying out some procedures on nails.

SUMMARY

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a portable vacuum cleaner comprises a main casing including an electric fan in an internal space thereof, the electric fan introducing air and discharging the air through an air discharge hole, a dust collector detachably coupled to the main casing to surround the electric fan, the main casing coupled with the dust collector to form a substantially rectangular body, a suction port formed in a front surface of the dust collector, a dust filter in the body between the main casing and the dust collector, and a manipulation unit for controlling the electric fan.

The suction port may project from the front surface of the dust collector to be curved up.

The portable vacuum cleaner may further comprise a suction port extension extending from the suction portion in the dust collector.

An outlet of the suction port extension may be oriented in a direction not facing the electric fan.

The dust filter may have a rubber packing along an outer circumferential surface thereof.

The air discharge hole may be provided in a side surface of the main casing.

The electric fan may include a plurality of blades that have different sizes, shapes, or gaps between two neighboring ones thereof along a circumferential direction thereof.

The portable vacuum cleaner may further comprise at least one auxiliary suction port on the suction port.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A more complete appreciation of the present disclosure and many of the attendant aspects thereof will be readily obtained as the same becomes better understood by reference to the following detailed description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a portable vacuum cleaner according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating the portable vacuum cleaner of FIG. 1, with the main casing and the dust collector separated from each other, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A′ of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a view illustrating an electric fan for reducing noise that is used in a portable vacuum cleaner according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; and

FIG. 5 is a perspective view illustrating a portable vacuum cleaner with auxiliary suction ports according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the inventive concept will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. The inventive concept, however, may be modified in various different ways, and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. As used herein, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be understood that when an element or layer is referred to as being “on,” “connected to,” “coupled to,” or “adjacent to” another element or layer, it can be directly on, connected, coupled, or adjacent to the other element or layer, or intervening elements or layers may be present.

When determined to make the gist of the present disclosure unnecessarily unclear, the detailed description of know functions or configurations is omitted. The components in the drawings may be exaggerated in line thickness or size for ease of description.

As used herein, the term “front” or “front surface” of an element may indicate a length-directional (or longitudinal) side or side surface of the element. As used herein, the term “side” or “side surface” of an element may indicate a side or side surface of the element substantially crossing the front or front surface of the element.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a portable vacuum cleaner according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating the portable vacuum cleaner of FIG. 1, with the main casing and the dust collector separated from each other, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A′ of FIG. 1.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the portable vacuum cleaner 10 includes a main casing 110, a dust collector 120, a suction port 122, a dust filter 200, and a manipulation unit 300.

The main casing 110 has an electric fan 112 in an inner space thereof. The electric fan 112 may be positioned at a side of the main casing 110 in the inner space. The electric fan 112 sucks in air from the outside and discharges the air to the outside through air discharge holes 118 to create a negative pressure in the internal space of the portable vacuum cleaner 10. The main casing 110 may be coupled with the dust collector 120 to form a rectangular body 100. The body 100 forms an outer appearance of the portable vacuum cleaner 10.

The main casing 110 may be shaped, in cross section, substantially as a triangle or trapezoid with two opposite side edges rounded as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, for enhanced efficiency of discharging air from the inside of the body 100 to the outside.

The dust collector 120 may be detachably coupled with the main casing 110 at a side of the main casing 110 to surround the electric fan 112 inside the main casing 110. The dust collector 120 may function as a cover covering the main casing 110.

The dust collector 120 collects dust from the air sucked in by the portable vacuum cleaner 10. The suction port 122 may be formed in a front surface of the dust collector 120.

The suction port 122 may communicate with the internal space of the dust collector 120, e.g., a space for collecting dust in the dust collector 120 (hereinafter, simply referred to as a dust collecting space). The suction port 122 may project from the front surface of the dust collector 120 in a direction substantially parallel with the top of a working place (e.g., a desk, table, or floor, hereinafter referred to as a “working table”) on which the portable vacuum cleaner 10 is seated, or the projecting suction port 122 may be shaped to be smoothly curved or rounded up as shown in FIG. 1.

The suction port 122 may be positioned at a predetermined height from the working table so that the suction port 122 may effectively suck up nail dust or other foreign materials or fumes.

Positioning the suction port 122 in the front surface of the body 100 may reduce the space occupied by the portable vacuum cleaner 10 on the working table while helping the worker (e.g., a nail worker) to conduct a procedure (e.g., a nail procedure) more comfortably. In other words, the portable vacuum cleaner 10 may allow for a reduced space and enhanced convenience upon conducting a procedure.

The dust collector 120 may be detached from the main casing 110 to empty the dust collected therein. For example, as shown in FIG. 2, the dust collector 120 may have a separation button 126 at an upper portion of the dust collector 120 to decouple the dust collector 120 from the main casing 110. The separation button 126 may come with an elastic member (e.g., a spring) that may be pressed to releasing a coupling between the main casing 110 and the dust collector 120.

The dust filter 200 may be disposed along a surface where the main casing 110 and dust collector 120 are engaged with each other (hereinafter, simply referred to as an “engagement surface”) between the main casing 110 and the dust collector 120 inside the body 100. The dust filter 200 filters or traps the dust from the air introduced through the suction port 122 by the electric fan 112 to prevent the dust from flowing into the inside of the main casing 110. In other words, the dust filter 200 enables dust-removed air to come out through the air discharge holes 118. Various types of filters including, but not limited to, an air filter, oil filter, pneumatic filter, or water filter, may be adopted as the dust filter 200. For example, a high efficiency particulate arresting (HEPA) filter may be used as the dust filter 200 to effectively filter out, trap or collect fine dust, such as nail dust. The dust filter 200 may be formed of various materials, such as, e.g., woven or unwoven fabric.

An anti-contact plate 116 with multiple through holes may be formed at a side of the electric fan 112 to prevent the dust filter 200 from coming in contact with the electric fan 112 when the electric fan 112 is driven to suck in air.

The dust filter 200 may have a rubber packing 210 along the outer circumferential edge thereof. The rubber packing 210 may seal a gap that may be made along the engagement surface between the main casing 110 and the dust collector 120 to prevent air from flowing in through the gap.

A suction port extension 124 may be extended in the dust collector 120 from the suction port 122 as shown in FIG. 2. The suction port extension 124 may prevent the dust-containing air introduced into the dust collector 120 from exiting back through the suction port 122.

As shown in FIG. 3, the outlet of the suction port extension 124 may be oriented in a direction not facing the electric fan 112 (e.g., in an opposite direction of the electric fan 112), preventing a deterioration of the suction efficiency of the electric fan 112 that might occur when dust collection concentrates on a portion of the dust filter 200.

The manipulation unit 300 is provided on a side of the main casing 110. The main casing 110 may include a controller for controlling the electric fan 112 or switches 310 for turning on/off the electric fan 112 or adjusting the rotational speed (e.g., RPM) of the electric fan 112.

The manipulation unit 300 may be provided in a side surface of the main casing 110 that is positioned opposite the electric fan 112, thus enabling the worker to more easily control the portable vacuum cleaner 10.

As shown in FIG. 1, the air discharge holes 118 may be positioned in the side surface of the main casing 110 where the manipulation unit 300 is formed. Although a plurality of air discharge holes 118 are shown in the drawings, the number of the air discharge holes 118 is not limited thereto.

A power supply 400 may be provided in the main casing 110 substantially facing the electric fan 112, e.g., between the manipulation unit 300 and the electric fan 112. The power supply 400 supplies the electric fan 112 with power for driving the electric fan 112. The power supply 400 may include a device for rectifying the power supplied from an external power source or a rechargeable battery.

The electric fan 112 may have a plurality of blades that are spun by an electric motor.

FIG. 4 is a view illustrating an electric fan for reducing noise that is used in a portable vacuum cleaner according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 4, the electric fan 112 may have a plurality of blades 114 along a circumferential direction thereof which may have different sizes, shapes, or gaps between two neighboring ones thereof.

Each of the blades 114 configured thus may create a different frequency of noise, and noises of different frequencies may be canceled off. The portable vacuum cleaner 10, when driven by the electric fan 112, may have reduced noise.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view illustrating a portable vacuum cleaner with auxiliary suction ports according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 5, the portable vacuum cleaner 10 may have at least one auxiliary suction port 123 positioned above the suction port 122. Although a plurality of auxiliary suction ports are shown in FIG. 5, the number of the auxiliary suction ports is not limited thereto.

Adding the auxiliary suction ports 123 may allow for more fully sucking up possible floating dust.

The shape or number of the auxiliary suction ports 123 may be selected as necessary. As shown in FIG. 5, the plurality of auxiliary suction ports 123 may be arranged in a vertical direction above the suction port 122. Each auxiliary suction port 123 may be formed substantially in the same shape as the suction port 122, but without limited thereto.

While the inventive concept has been shown and described with reference to exemplary embodiments thereof, it will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that various changes in form and detail may be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the inventive concept as defined by the following claims. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A portable vacuum cleaner, comprising: a main casing including an electric fan in an internal space thereof, the electric fan introducing air and discharging the air through an air discharge hole; a dust collector detachably coupled to the main casing to surround the electric fan, the main casing coupled with the dust collector to form a substantially rectangular body; a suction port formed in a front surface of the dust collector; a dust filter in the body between the main casing and the dust collector; and a manipulation unit for controlling the electric fan.
 2. The portable vacuum cleaner of claim 1, wherein the suction port projects from the front surface of the dust collector to be curved up.
 3. The portable vacuum cleaner of claim 1, further comprising a suction port extension extending from the suction portion in the dust collector.
 4. The portable vacuum cleaner of claim 3, wherein an outlet of the suction port extension is oriented in a direction not facing the electric fan.
 5. The portable vacuum cleaner of claim 1, wherein the dust filter has a rubber packing along an outer circumferential surface thereof.
 6. The portable vacuum cleaner of claim 1, wherein the air discharge hole is provided in a side surface of the main casing.
 7. The portable vacuum cleaner of claim 1, wherein the electric fan includes a plurality of blades that have different sizes, shapes, or gaps between two neighboring ones thereof along a circumferential direction thereof.
 8. The portable vacuum cleaner of claim 1, further comprising at least one auxiliary suction port on the suction port. 